Tuesday, June 1, 2010 - 7:30pm & 9pmCD Release for "Nuance"Vibrato Grill and Jazz Club2930 North Beverly Glen CircleWest Los Angeles, CA 90077Passionate pianist, composer and producer, Lisa Hilton grew up in Southern California in a very musical family. Her father was a college professor and her mother did tax preparation and bookkeeping, but it was her great uncle who was a well regarded Dutch pianist. As a young girl, she taught herself to play the piano with a colored keyboard guide and soon began composing her first simple songs. She began the study of classical and modern piano literature at eight years old, and as a teen she began playing standards and writing blues riffs.

Now, Lisa Hilton's beautiful melodies, catchy beats and expressive piano style have captured the attention of music lovers everywhere. Her timeless instrumental music appeals to listeners of all ages, is currently being played on radio around the world and continues to earn awards, honors, and outstanding reviews. As a bandleader she has played with the some of the most well respected names in jazz: Christian McBride, Lewis Nash, Larry Grenadier, Bobby Militello, Reggie McBride, Steve Wilson, Jeremy Pelt, and Tal Bergman, to name a few. As a producer she has again worked with the top engineers such as eighteen time Grammy Award winner, Al Schmitt, as well as Larry Mah, known for his work on "The Matrix" and other films, Doug Sax, Steve Genewick, and Steve Sykes.

Due to challenges in her own music education, Hilton is now very committed to music programs for children and teens, especially for those that are blind or visually impaired, such as programs at Perkins School for the Blind in Waterton, Massachusetts near Boston, The Junior Blind of America's Camp Bloomfield, and Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Come and experience the NRG of DEEJAY SNEŽANA from miami beach spining her delicious delectable beats and her fabulous array of performing artist. SneZana started with the first Nikki Beach in Miami in the summer of 2000 after spending many years in Japan working the Avex Group, touring constantly with the release of over 10 CDs with her band.

Snezana fell in love with Miami and over the past 9 years saw her as the resident DJ and entertainment director for Nikki Beach. Performing at their locations from New York, Portugal, Turks and Caicos Marbella Puerto Vallerta and Hondouras she deejayed, she danced and co ordinated performers... fire dancers...aerial artist..body painters hula hoop and go go dancers...belly dancers VJs and lighting ...

Snezana also launched the Ultra Lounge brand Pangaea at the Hard Rock Casino in Florida and the Pangaea in Austin Texas. Her residencies in Las Vegas with Randy Gerbers Green Valley Ranch infamous Nirvana pool party to Pure at Caesers Casino. Her ability to read any crowd and play music that made people move came from her experience as a professional dancer long before she graced the decks of the one two's. Her incredible ability to move from genre to genre whether it be pure house and electro music to disco, 80s 90s and her favorite rock.

Her passion for music is clearly visible in the way she moves through a crowd with her tambourine, her joy of making all the girls dance and get a party started is unique and inspiring.

Gina usually writes the setlist by hand about an hour before the show, but this time she informed it to us:

1st setI’ve never been in love beforeCheek to cheekCall mePeople get readySomethingUntil I met youFool on the hillWhen the world was youngThey can’t take that away from meDo nothin' till you hear from meThink of one

Other Music is giving away two pairs of tickets to see England's Athlete, who will be performing in the NY/NJ area for two evenings in support of their much-acclaimed new album, Black Swan. To enter for tickets to their Hoboken show at Maxwell's on Monday, May 31, email giveaway@othermusic.com, and for the following night at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC on Tuesday, June 1, email tickets@othermusic.com.They'll notify the two winners this Friday, good luck!

Scotland's Twilight Sad will be bringing their powerful, brooding pop sounds to the Bowery Ballroom stage this Sunday, performing along with Japanese noise-rockers MONO. Other Music has two pairs of tickets to give away to this epic bill, courtesy of Twilight Sad's label, FatCat Records, and to enter just email contest@othermusic.com. They'll notify the two winners this Friday.

"Bob Mintzer is undeniably one of the most influential and prolific jazz stylists of my generation. I am thrilled and honored to have this rare opportunity to share the stage with my inspirational friend and musical hero." - Bob Sheppard

“Bob Shepard is one of my favorite saxophonists and all-around musicians . He always surprises you with his playing, and is immediately on the team when you play with him. I look forward to working with Bob in a small band setting." - Bob Mintzer

"We are pleased to present this diverse line-up of established and rising stars at some of thearea's most exciting venues, most of which have agreed to lower their tickets to $15 or less."said George Wein, CEO of New Festival Productions, LLCand producer of the CareFusion Jazz Festival New York.

The event of the seasonExclusive non-stop show all night, and exclusive performance by Themed DancersAmazing decordation! Music by DJ IndigoDress all in white, feel the coolness of the snow!Host by Helen Entertainment

In this time-bending, sexy, lesbian romp with an irreverent nod to the popular art-house classic Run, Lola, Run a talented, but distracted photographer, Lola (Ashleigh Sumner), on the verge of success in both love and work, could lose it all if she doesn t make it to a crucial meeting on time. But, as usual, Lola is late. With her job and girlfriend Casey (Jill Bennett) on the line, she has three chances to make it right. In a desperate race through the streets and backrooms of San Francisco, time grows short will Lola make it?

With a pop sensibility that mixes live action, animation and still photography "And Then Came Lola" explores an old question in a fresh new way; If we try, try again, will we finally get it right?

Monday, May 24, 2010

Ron Carter is among the most original, prolific, and influential bassists in jazz. With more than 2,000 albums' performances to his credit, he worked with producer Arnaldo DeSouteiro in several projects. Mr. DeSouteiro also produced or supervised reissues of several albums and sessions on which Ron Carter took place in the 70s, when he became the house bassist for Creed Taylor's CTI and Kudu labels, reaching the pinnacle of his popularity "among and beyond" jazz fans.

In the early 1960s he performed throughout the United States in concert halls and nightclubs with Jaki Byard and Eric Dolphy. He later toured Europe with Cannonball Adderley. From 1963 to 1968, he was a member of the classic and acclaimed Miles Davis Quintet. He was named Outstanding Bassist of the Decade by the Detroit News, Jazz Bassist of the Year by DownBeat magazine, and Most Valuable Player by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

In 1993 Ron Carter earned a Grammy award for Best Jazz Instrumental Group (the Miles Davis Tribute Band) and another Grammy in 1998 for "Call Sheet Blues," an instrumental composition from the film "Round Midnight." In addition to scoring and arranging music for many films, including some projects for Public Broadcasting System, Carter has composed music for A Gathering of Old Men, starring Lou Gosset Jr., The Passion of Beatrice directed by Bertrand Tavernier, and Blind Faith starring Courtney B. Vance. Carter shares his expertise in the series of books he authored, among which are Building Jazz Bass Lines and The Music of Ron Carter; the latter contains 130 of his published and recorded compositions.

Carter earned a bachelor of music degree from the Eastman School in Rochester and a master's degree in double bass from the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. He has also received two honorary doctorates, from the New England Conservatory of Music and the Manhattan School of Music, and was the 2002 recipient of the prestigious Hutchinson Award from the Eastman School at the University of Rochester. Most recently he was honored by the French Minister of Culture with France's premier cultural award--the medallion and title of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters, given to those who have distinguished themselves in the domain of artistic or literary creation and for their contribution to the spread of arts and letters in France and the world.

Carter has lectured, conducted, and performed at clinics and master classes, instructing jazz ensembles and teaching the business of music at numerous universities. He was Artistic Director of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Studies while it was located in Boston and, after 18 years on the faculty of the Music Department of The City College of New York, he is now Distinguished Professor Emeritus although, as a performer, he remains as active as ever.

You won't want to miss the swinging sound of “The Aggregation” under the direction of Eddie Allen on Tuesday, May 25 at Jazz Tuesdays in the Gillespie Auditorium at the NY Baha'i Center (53 East 11th Street between University Place and Broadway). There will be 2 shows: 8:00 and 9:30 p.m. Please call 212-222-5159 for advanced tickets and Information.

Trumpeter, composer, arranger, author, educator, Eddie Allen is called on to play everything from jazz to R & B/pop to Latin to symphonic to Broadway and everything in between. He studied music, theory and arranging at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music in Milwaukee and the University of Wisconsin in Green Bay before moving to the east coast. He received a Bachelor of Music degree from William Paterson University of New Jersey. He’s worked with such jazz greats as; Art Blakey, Joe Henderson, Randy Weston, Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Foster, Billy Harper, Henry Threadgill, Bobby Watson, Jon Faddis, Benny Carter, Panama Francis and Steve Turre.

Eddie has recorded and performed with, as well as composed for: Louis Hayes, Lester Bowie, Etta Jones & Houston Person, Mongo Santamaria, Chico Freeman, Charli Persip, Vanessa Rubin and Muhal Richard Abrams. He’s performed in the orchestras of such Broadway hits as; Ain’t Misbehavin’, Black & Blue, Side Show, Jelly’s Last Jam, Five Guys Named Mo’ and Rollin’ On The T.O.B.A. As an author he’s written the instructional method book, “An Introduction To The Bb Concert Blues”, which is published by Charles Colin Publishing - N.Y.C.

Admission is 15.00, 10.00 for students. Tickets will be sold at the door, or call 212-222-5159 for advance tickets and information.The John Birks Gillespie Auditorium, dedicated to the late jazz great Dizzy Gillespie, who was a Bahá'í, is located within the New York City Bahá'í Center. Beginning on January 6, 2004, the anniversary of Dizzy’s death, his former pianist and musical director, Mike Longo, began presenting weekly jazz concerts every Tuesday evening at 8:00 and 9:30 PM.

Just a little reminder that Ellyne Plotnick's "Life is Beautiful" CD release party is happening tomorrow evening at the Tutuma Social Club. Two sets of great music: 8pm & 10:30 (get there a little bit earlier for seating)

This very cool intimate basement club is the only Afro-Peruvian jazz club in NYC. They serve out-of-this-world drinks and food... There is no cover or minimum, which is really great. Order a Pisco Sour and relax!

The legendary Cameo in Miami is reborn. The infamous night club is back with a new attitude and a totally new look. Taking inspiration from "the dark and dirty side" of the disco era, Cameo brings a comforting feel to the club goer, while at the same time having plenty of surprises to keep things fresh and exciting.

Spearheading the revitalization of Washington Avenue, Cameo is a symbol of this rebirth on Miami Beach. With an interior designed by renowned nightclub and lounge designer Cal Fortis, the venue is decorated and styled with the latest in materials and design including many never-before-seen elements and fixtures.

On the tech side, a sound system designed and installed by Louis Puig and David Padilla will continue the building's tradition of providing excellence in that area. The Cameo brings top-notch, A-list, glamorous nightlife back to South Beach.

Rating: *****Total Time: 71m17sRecorded at The Static Shack (Indianapolis, Indiana), June 14-17, 2009, masterfully engineered by Gary Mielke (who co-produced the sessions with Bobby Broom and Pharez himself), "Transient Journey" reveals a first-class trumpeter with high chops a la Freddie Hubbard and a great inventiveness as a composer. The first three tracks - the vigorous hard-bop "The Truth Seeker," the laid-back "Transient Journey" and the medium-tempo "Brother Thomas" - would be enough to put on his name on the top of the contemporary jazz scene. But the whole disc is a winner, including two tunes inspired by our President - the funkyfied "Our Man Barack" and the bop-ish "Yes We Can" - plus the haunting ballad "Sunset on the Gaza" and the pretty bossa "Until Tomorrow Comes" played on the flugelhorn.

Given the mastery exhibited by Pharez Whitted as a trumpeter, composer, and bandleader on "Transient Journey," it's difficult to believe that the disc is only his third in a long and active career. But the CD, released by Owl Studios last month, heralds the dawn of a new era for the Chicago-based musician/educator: Whitted has arrived as a major jazz recording artist.

"I'm especially happy to see this new record from Pharez because of how strongly I feel about him as a trumpet player and musician," says renowned guitarist Bobby Broom. "I really admire how he's been able to channel all the trumpet greats that came before him to wind up at his own powerful, distinct, and recognizable sound and style.

"Pharez's follow-through on his musical vision -- including the creation of these great compositions and the assembly and direction of this group -- and the culmination in Transient Journey, is something that I'm proud to be a part of," says Broom. "And just wait till people hear this group live!"

"This group" would be Pharez's regular working band, consisting of a Windy City contingent - Broom, pianist Ron Perrillo who sometimes uses an electronic keyboard to emulate a Fender Rhodes sound, and bassist Dennis Carroll - as well as tenor/soprano saxophonist Eddie Bayard and the young (and fantastic) drummer Greg Artry from Whitted's hometown of Indianapolis.Throughout his long-overdue third CD (he previously recorded a pair of albums in the mid-1990s for MoJazz, a Motown subsidiary), Whitted displays his remarkable command of the trumpet and his broad scope as a composer. Both are firmly rooted in the post-bop tradition associated with players like his late friend Freddie Hubbard.

In fact, CD annotator Neil Tesser observes that "Throughout the album-- throughout all of Pharez's music, really -- the spirit of Freddie Hubbard hovers nearby. . . . [Pharez Whitted] honors the late giant with his combination of intensity and technique, spank and sparkle, and that hot-cider tone."

It was through his large and musically accomplished family that Whitted, 49, first encountered Hubbard and his music. Pharez's parents -- drummer Thomas Whitted Sr. and singing bassist Virtue Hampton Whitted -- had been members of a jazz orchestra called the Hampton Band that also included five of his uncles (trombonist Slide Hampton among them) and three of his aunts. His three older brothers are musicians, and one of his sisters a singer. His father played drums with Hubbard in the 1950s, before the trumpeter moved from Indianapolis to New York.

Pharez went on to earn a master's in jazz studies at Indiana University, studying with David Baker. He signed with MoJazz in 1994 and recorded two CDs, but found himself at odds with the label with respect to musical direction. "I was hearing something else," he says now. "We musicians reject the fact that the commercial world is forcing us to do something, but then the jazz world is trying to force us to do something else again. The music you play should be something people want to listen to. I try to live down the middle. That's where the music usually comes from, and that's where I am.

Since becoming Chicago State University's Director of Jazz Studies in 2001, Whitted has immersed himself in the city's vibrant jazz scene. He's played with, among others, legendary saxophonists Ari Brown and Von Freeman, and for the past six years he's been a member of the 17-piece Chicago Jazz Ensemble led by Jon Faddis. He formed his own sextet four years ago and finally overcame his reluctance to record. The result is "Transient Journey."

Whitted plans to feature the music of the new CD with his band at several upcoming shows, including the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, 6/4-5; and the Green Mill in Chicago, 6/25-26. He's also planning to do some writing this summer. "Not sure what the configuration is gonna be," he says. "It could be different, but it'll be me, with new music."

One thing's for sure: henceforth, he'll no longer be a stranger to the recording studio.

CD of the DayReturn to Forever: "La Fiesta in West Germany 1972" (Be Twisted!) 2010

Despite the fact that it's a bootleg CD issue, copied directly from a soundboard during a concert in Hamburg (mispelled Hamburgh on the back cover) 38 years ago, the sound quality is very good and the musical content is simply superb. It's really a must-have item for any RTF fan, specially if you consider that it's a rare sample of the first RTF incarnation, but without Flora Purim. In other words: a totally instrumental set.

Surprisingly, Airto doesn't performs any percussion instruments neither does any vocal effects, but plays his ass off on the drums. Joe Farrell plays only flute & soprano sax, avoiding the tenor. And Stanley Clarke focuses on the acoustic bass exclusively, while Chick concentrates on the Fender Rhodes (with a lot of sensational wah-wah and distortion effects), using the acoustic piano only once, during the improvised intro for a 30-minute-plus medley of "Sometime Ago" (the best "baião" ever composed by a non-Brazilian musician!) and "La Fiesta."

This 68-minute long concert was recorded on September 15, 1972 - seven months after the NY recordings of the "Return To Forever" debut album for ECM, and one month prior to the London sessions of their second LP, "Light As A Feather," that would be released by Polydor. It explains why Chick announces Stanley Clarke as the only composer of "Light As A Feather," since Flora Purim hadn't added the lyrics yet. The German audience also had the privilege to listen to "Captain Marvel" as the opening tune.

For the back cover, the bootleg producers used a picture of RTF with Lenny White on drums, although giving the proper credit to Airto.

Friday, May 21, 2010

This Montreal band's latest album, The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night, is filled with magnificently dense and dreamy, harmony-driven rockers that we can only imagine will sound amazing when performed live next Friday at the Bowery Ballroom. Other Music has a pair of passes up for grabs to this show, and to enter, email giveaway@othermusic.com.They will notify the winner on Monday, May 24.

Victoria Bergsman (a/k/a Taken by Trees) will also be performing in New York City on Tuesday, at (Le) Poisson Rouge. The former-Concretes' singer's last record, 2009's "East of Eden," was a sweetly exotic set of East-meets-West folk-pop, and we're guessing that she'll be playing songs off of that album and who knows what other musical surprises she'll have in store. If you'd like to enter to win a pair of tickets, email mailto:tickets@othermusic.com?subject=Taken, and they'll notify two winners on Friday.

There are many bass players who "sing" as they perform - that occasionally audible hum that's heard as they play their solos. Imagine a player who sings in the tradition of Ella Fitzgerald and plays the bass with the authority and swing of the great Ray Brown. With these and many other strong influences, Kristin Korb has created a style and presence all her own.

Born and raised in Montana, Kristin grew up in a musical family and often presented concerts with her three younger brothers. Her passion for music eventually led to a bachelor's degree in music education from Eastern Montana College. In 1992, she moved to San Diego to hone her bass skills with bass professor Bertram Turetzky, earned a master's degree from the University of California (San Diego), and became one of the busiest bassists in San Diego. Kristin just finished her stint as Director of Jazz Studies at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington, where she performed with the faculty jazz ensemble, taught bass, jazz history and directed their premier large jazz ensemble, Jazz Band 1.

She has now relocated to focus on her performing career based out of Los Angeles. Kristin tours nationally as both an artist and educator. Recent performances/clinics include a presentation at the International Association of Jazz Educators (IAJE) Conference, a tour of Japan, the 2001 Brandon Jazz Festival (Canada), and the Paradise Valley and West Coast Jazz Parties. She has been featured at the International Society of Bassists Conference (in 1999 and 2001) and has recently been appointed to their Board of Directors. In addition to Ray Brown and Benny Green, Kristin has appeared with such artists as Clark Terry, Bill Mays, Bobby Shew, Jeff Hamilton, Harry Allen, Carl Allen, Joe LaBarbera, Tamir Hendelman, and Mike Wofford. As a leader, Korb has released several CDs and one DVD.Saxophonist/flutist Mary Fettig has recorded and toured with such greats as Stan Kenton, Marian McPartland, Tito Puente, Flora Purim and Airto, playing jazz festivals including Concord, Monterey, Playboy, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Montreaux, and North Sea. She has many studio credits in film, television, video games and radio. In San Francisco she played 25 different Broadway shows in the pit orchestras as a woodwind doubler and regularly performs with the San Francisco Symphony. Mary's own recordings include "In Good Company", "Relativity", and her newest release, "Brazilian Footprints." She is on the San Francisco Conservatory of Music faculty.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Recorded in 2006 in Rio de Janeiro, but only issued now in May 2010, "Samba Jazz" features a trio led by veteran pianist Osmar Milito - with Augusto Mattoso on bass & Rafael Barata on drums - performing 24 songs composed by the Minas Gerais bossa hero Pacífico Mascarenhas, founder of the Sambacana group.Among the tracks are "O Jogo," "Começou de Brincadeira," "Pouca Duração," "O Vento Que Soprou," "Lua Narcisa," "Num Desses Dias" and "Olhando Estrelas no Céu."

This next Tuesday, May 25, Holly Miranda will headlining at the Bowery Ballroom performing a set of her wonderfully mysterious, atmospheric songs along with show openers Class Actress and Grooms. Other Music has two pairs of tickets to give away -- just email contest@othermusic.com to enter. They'll notify the two winners this Friday.

In the opening of this 107-minute long DVD, Hank Jones says he visited Kobe for the first time "ten years ago" (ie, 1986), and Ron Carter refers to the city as "the birthplace of jazz in Japan."The concert, filmed on December 4, 1996, starts with Jones-Carter duo performances of "'Round Midnight" and "Polka Dots and Moonbeams," followed by trio renditions (with Lewis Nash added on drums) of "Blue Monk" and "A Night in Tunisia."Hank Jones' part of the concert, leading Santi DeBriano (bass) and Jimmie Smith (drums), begins with an up-tempo version of "Speak Low," and continues with "On Green Dolphin Street," "Body and Soul," and "What's New?" Japanese songstress Shigeko Suzuki joins the group for "It's Alright With Me".After an intermission, Ron Carter's Quartet - with Stephen Scott (piano), Lewis Nash (drums) and Steve Kroon (percussion) - enters the stage, playing "Blues for D.P." (Ron's tribute to Duke Pearson, a song covered by Grover Washington, Jr.), the bossa-nova "Mr. Bow-Tie" (with Kroon playing "pandeiro" as he learned from his teacher and mentor Dom Um Romão), "Cut and Paste" and Milt Jackson's "Bag's Groove."The final part of that memorable night reunites Hank Jones, Ron Carter, Steve Kroon and the two drummers, Lewis Nash & Jimmie Smith. This quintet performs "Satin Doll," "Take The 'A' Train" and, as the last number, a blues credited as "All Members Session," on which bassist Santi DeBriano and pianist Stephen Scott also join the stage, transforming the group in a very special septet. In a very special evening, indeed. ジャズ・ピアノの神様的存在であるハンク・ジョーンズとモダン・ジャズ・ベーシストの第一人者、ロン・カーター。数々の名盤を生んだグレート・ジャズ・トリオの再現を彷彿とさせる２人の共演はベテランならでわの語り合うような演奏で、新たな感動と興奮を運んできます。’９６年１２月４日神戸国際会館ハーバーランドプラザで行われたライブを完全集録。あらすじ （１）ラウンド・ミッドナイト（ドリーム・デュオ）（２）ポルカ・ドッツ・アンド・ムーンビームス（同）（３）ブルー・モンク（グレート・ジャズ・トリオ・アゲイン）（４）ア・ナイト・イン・チュニジア（同）（５）スピーク・ロウ（ハンク・ジョーンズ・トリオ）（６）オン・グリーン・ドルフィン・ストリート（同）（７）ボディ・アンド・ソウル（同）（８）ホワット・ニュー（同）（９）イッツ・オール・ライト・ウィズ・ミー（ハンク・ジョーンズ・トリオ，鈴木重子）（１０）ブルース・フォーＤ．Ｐ．（ロン・カーター・カルテット）（１１）ミスター・ボウ・タイ（同）（１２）カット・アンド・ペースト（同）（１３）バグス・グルーヴ（同） 他全１６曲 （品番：ＰＮＢＭ７の収録内容）

From his official website:Hank Jones, pianist and jazz legend, beloved husband of Theodosia, dear uncle to his nieces and nephews across the country, friend to music, inspiration to countless musicians, died May 16, 2010 in New York City, after a brief illness. He was 91 years old, and would have been 92 on July 31st. Today we celebrate his spirit, his gift, his joy, his wisdom and his friendship. Hank lived and breathed music, and was never far from a keyboard, even at the end. His incredible burst of productivity - concerts, recordings, fundraisers, clinics - these last few years was unprecedented and truly remarkable. He had gigs planned through next year and in fact was due to play Birdland in NYC next week.

Mr. Jones spent much of his career in the background. For three and a half decades he was primarily a sideman, most notably with Ella Fitzgerald; for much of that time he also worked as a studio musician on radio and television.

His fellow musicians admired his imagination, his versatility and his distinctive style, which blended the urbanity and rhythmic drive of the Harlem stride pianists, the dexterity of Art Tatum and the harmonic daring of bebop. (The pianist, composer and conductor Andre Previn once called Mr. Jones his favorite pianist, "regardless of idiom.")

But unlike his younger brothers Thad, who played trumpet with Count Basie and was later a co-leader of a celebrated big band, and Elvin, an influential drummer who formed a successful combo after six years with John Coltrane's innovative quartet, Mr. Jones seemed content to keep a low profile.

That started changing around the time he turned 60. Riding a wave of renewed interest in jazz piano that also transformed his close friend and occasional duet partner Tommy Flanagan from a perpetual sideman to a popular nightclub headliner, Mr. Jones began working and recording regularly under his own name, both unaccompanied and as the leader of a trio. Listeners and critics took notice.

Reviewing a nightclub appearance in 1989, Peter Watrous of The New York Times praised Mr. Jones as "an extraordinary musician" whose playing "resonates with jazz history" and who "embodies the idea of grace under pressure, where assurance and relaxation mask nearly impossible improvisations."

Mr. Jones further enhanced his reputation in the 1990s with a striking series of recordings that placed his piano in a range of contexts -- including an album with a string quartet, a collaboration with a group of West African musicians and a duet recital with the bassist Charlie Haden devoted to spirituals and hymns. In 1998, he appeared at Lincoln Center with a 32-piece orchestra in a concert consisting mostly of his own compositions.

Hank Jones was born in Vicksburg, Miss., on July 31, 1918. He grew up one of seven children in Pontiac, Mich., near Detroit, where he started studying piano at an early age and first performed professionally at 13. He began playing jazz even though his father, a Baptist deacon, disapproved of the genre.

Mr. Jones worked with regional bands, mostly in Michigan and Ohio, before moving to New York in 1944 to join the trumpeter and singer Hot Lips Page's group at the Onyx Club on 52nd Street.

He was soon in great demand, working for well-known performers like the saxophonist Coleman Hawkins and the singer Billy Eckstine

"People heard me and said, 'Well, this is not just a boy from the country -- maybe he knows a few chords,'" he told Ben Waltzer in a 2001 interview for The Times. He abandoned the freelance life in late 1947 to become Ella Fitzgerald's accompanist and held that job until 1953, occasionally taking time out to record with Charlie Parker and others.

He kept busy after leaving Fitzgerald. Among many other activities, he began an association with Benny Goodman that would last into the 70s, and he was a member of the last group Goodman's swing-era rival Artie Shaw led before retiring in 1954. But financial security beckoned, and in 1959 he became a staff musician at CBS.

Mr. Jones remained intermittently involved in jazz during his long tenure at CBS, which ended when the network disbanded its music department in the mid-1970s. He was a charter member of the big band formed by his brother Thad and the drummer Mel Lewis in 1966, and he recorded a few albums as a leader. More often, however, he was heard but not seen on "The Ed Sullivan Show" and other television and radio programs.

"Most of the time during those 15 or so years, I wasn't playing the kind of music I'd prefer to play," Mr. Jones told Howard Mandel of Down Beat magazine in 1994. "It may have slowed me down a bit. I would have been a lot further down the road to where I want to be musically had I not worked at CBS." But, he explained, the work gave him "an economic base for trying to build something."

Once free of his CBS obligations, Mr. Jones began quietly making a place for himself in the jazz limelight. He teamed with the bassist Ron Carter and the drummer Tony Williams, alumni of the Miles Davis Quintet, to form the Great Jazz Trio in 1976. (The uncharacteristically immodest name of the group, which changed bassists and drummers frequently over the years, was not Mr. Jones's idea.)

Two years later he began a long run as the musical director and onstage pianist for "Ain't Misbehavin'," the Broadway revue built around the music of Fats Waller, while also playing late-night solo sets at the Cafe Ziegfeld in Midtown Manhattan.

By the early 1980s, Mr. Jones's late-blooming career as a leader was in full swing. Since then he has worked frequently in the United States, Europe and Japan. While he had always recorded prolifically -- by one estimate he can be heard on more than a thousand albums -- for the first time he concentrated on recording under his own name, which he continued to do well into the 21st century.

Mr. Jones was named a National Endowment for the Arts jazz master in 1989. He received the National Medal of Arts in 2008 and a lifetime achievement Grammy Award in 2009.

Reaching for superlatives, critics often wrote that Mr. Jones had an exceptional touch. He himself was not so sure.

"I never tried consciously to develop a 'touch,'" he told The Detroit Free Press in 1997. "What I tried to do was make whatever lines I played flow evenly and fully and as smoothly as possible.

Hank Jones, whose extraordinary combination of versatility, craftsmanship and creativity during his nearly eight-decade career earned him the reputation as a jazz pianist's pianist, died Sunday. He was 91.

Jones died at a hospital in New York after a brief illness, publicist Jordy Freed said.

Praised for the feather-soft precision of his touch, Jones was equally adept at unleashing the piano's full, orchestral gamut of sounds. Rhythmic lift and propulsive swing were inherent to his playing, whether performing as an accompanist or in a solo setting. And his deep understanding of harmony was the foundation for a skilled mastery of the diverse material in the Great American Songbook.

"His style is as profound and defined as any of the major masters," jazz pianist Bill Charlap told the Detroit Free Press in 2006. "It's equal to Teddy Wilson, equal to Bill Evans, equal to Thelonious Monk, equal to Tommy Flanagan. It's as much a unique musical utterance and just as balanced in terms of intellectualism and feeling. With Hank Jones you hear the past, present and the future of jazz piano."

Jones' own evaluation of his playing was far more modest. Invited to become a member of alto saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker's group in the '40s, and trumpeter Miles Davis' band in the '50s, he declined the offers.

"Both times I said, 'I'm not good enough to do that,'" Jones recalled in the 1997 Detroit Free Press piece. "Isn't that something? I probably missed the chance of a lifetime."

Nevertheless, he played and recorded with Parker and Davis, as well as other leading jazz artists including Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Lester Young, Milt Jackson, Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins and numerous others.

Emerging on the jazz scene during the Swing Era years of the 1930s, Jones was soon engulfed in the new wave of bebop arriving in the '40s. As new stylistic patterns arrived, decade after decade, he continued to find a way to transform his own playing, without losing his creative essence as a jazz artist. In more recent years, he partnered with younger players – saxophonist Joe Lovano, bassist Charlie Haden and pianist Brad Mehldau among them. But his self-effacing view of his own skills never changed.

In a conversation with Lovano for DownBeat magazine in 2005, he discussed his desire to reach the musical "stream of consciousness" achieved by players such as saxophonists Young and Hawkins. "It's not the easiest thing in the world," Jones said. "I'm still trying to get there myself. Just give me a little more time. Maybe another 100 years."

As recently as 2008, Los Angeles jazz audiences heard Jones in a pair of Southland performances – in a trio concert at UCLA, and a 90th birthday celebration at the Hollywood Bowl -- clearly illustrating that he had long ago ascended the lofty level he described.

Jones was the eldest of three brothers whose extraordinary accomplishments established them as one of the jazz world's most honored musical families. Thad Jones, five years younger, was a trumpeter, bandleader and highly regarded arranger/composer. Elvin Jones, nine years younger, was an innovative drummer best known for his ground-breaking work with John Coltrane. Both died earlier -- Thad in 1986; Elvin in 2004; "I just wish they could have lived longer," said Jones, "because they both still had so much to say."

Despite the high level of fraternal talent and familial closeness, however, the three rarely performed or recorded together.

Born Henry Jones on July 31, 1918, in Vicksburg, Miss., he moved to Pontiac, Mich., with his parents in the early 1920s. His father was a Baptist deacon and a lumber inspector who also played the guitar; his mother played the piano.

Jones' skills developed quickly, and despite his father's belief that jazz was a "bad influence," Hank was working professional jobs with traveling dance bands based in the Detroit area by the time he was in his mid-teens. After graduating from high school, he continued working as a busy sideman, before moving to New York City in 1944 to play with the band of trumpeter Oran "Hot Lips" Page.

Over the next 15 years he was a first-call accompanist for virtually every major jazz artist of the time, backing Fitzgerald, Davis, Young, Adderley, Hawkins, Holiday and Ben Webster, among others. A three-year run with Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic from 1947 to 1950 matched him with Roy Eldridge, Max Roach and Parker. In 1955, with the release of "The Trio of Hank Jones" (with Wendell Marshall and Kenny Clarke), he began a six-decade sequence of supplementing his busy sideman schedule with recordings under his own name.

Although Jones arrived on the scene at the time when the dominant jazz style was transitioning from swing to bebop, he maintained his own sense of creative equilibrium, always declining to describe himself as a "full-fledged bebop player." Asked by Jazz Times magazine to name his primary influences, he listed Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson and Fats Waller -- each a player with a unique, musically omnivorous style. His affection for Tatum, in particular, led him to maintain a degree of separation from the rush to bebop that was attracting the players of his generation.

"Tatum was the first one to use all those harmonic devices that later guys like Dizzy and Charlie used," Jones told this writer. "It sounded new to people who heard it for the first time. But it wasn't new to someone who'd listened to Art Tatum. He was Mozart, Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, all rolled into one."

In the late 1950s, Jones was offered a staff position at CBS and opted for the security of regular employment. The experience -- which included playing assignments reaching from "The Ed Sullivan Show" to "Captain Kangaroo" -- further enhanced his already eclectic abilities.

"Sometimes, you played accompaniments for singers," he said on an NPR broadcast in 2008. "Sometimes you played for groups. Sometimes you played for operatic sequences. Sometimes you played for elephant acts. Sometimes, you played for dog acts.... So you did a variety of things, all of which, when you added them up, contributed to your repertoire."

One of the other "variety of things" Jones did during that period was to play piano for Marilyn Monroe when she sang "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy at his 45th birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in May 1962.

When he left CBS in 1976, Jones embarked on a new phase in his career. He performed on eight new albums over the next two years, and -- in the late '70s -- was the musical director and onstage pianist for the Broadway production of the Waller revue, "Ain't Misbehavin'." His Great Jazz Trio recordings, which began in the mid-1970s with Ron Carter and Tony Williams from Davis' rhythm section, eventually teamed Jones with, among others, Eddie Gomez, Al Foster, Jimmy Cobb, John Patitucci and Christian McBride. A series of piano duet encounters matched him with John Lewis, Flanagan and Mehldau.

He also recorded "Steal Away," a set of hymns and spirituals with Haden; accompanied singer Roberta Gambarini in highly praised sets of standard tunes; collaborated with a Mandinka band from Mali; and recorded a set of Jones' celebratory interpretations of Tatum compositions -- one of his many solo piano outings. More recently, his duet partnership with Lovano was applauded as a remarkable interfacing of musical generations.

Among his many honors, Jones was granted a National Medal of the Arts, an NEA Jazz Masters Award, an ASCAP Jazz Living Legend Award and a Jazz Journalists Assn. Lifetime Achievement Award. He also was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame and received five Grammy nominations.

Eddie Palmieri, known for his charismatic power and bold innovative drive, has a musical career that spans over 50 years as a bandleader of Salsa and Latin Jazz orchestras. With a discography that includes 36 titles, Mr. Palmieri has been awarded Nine Grammy Awards. He received his first Grammy Award in 1975 for his release The Sun of Latin Music, which is often considered the most historic, as it was the first time Latin Music was recognized by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS). He would win again the following year for Unfinished Masterpiece, Palo Pa ' Rumba in 1984, Solito in 1985 and La Verdad in 1987. He received a Latin Grammy and a traditional Grammy for his 2000 release with Tito Puente entitled Obra Maestra/Masterpiece, Listen Here! in 2006 and Simpatico in 2007, a collaborative effort with trumpet master Brian Lynch, for Best Latin Jazz Album. Simpatico was also recognized by the Jazz Journalist Association as Best Latin Jazz Album that same year. In 1993 Mr. Palmieri was appointed to the board of governors of the New York chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences where he was instrumental in creating a new category for Latin Jazz in 1995. His album Palmas was among the nominees in this newly created category, and in 1996 he was nominated once again for his album Arete.

In 1988, the Smithsonian Institute recorded two of Palmieri's performances for their catalog of the National Museum of American History in Washington , D.C. , a rare public honor. In 1990, he was invited by Paul Simon to serve as a consultant on his release Rhythm of the Saints. He was awarded the Eubie Blake Award by Dr. Billy Taylor in 1991 and is among the very few Latin musicians recognized by both the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico and New York State.

The 1998 Heineken Jazz Festival in San Juan, Puerto Rico paid tribute to his contributions as a bandleader, bestowing him an honorary doctorate degree from the Berklee College of Music. In 2002, Yale University awarded Mr. Palmieri the Chubb Fellowship, an award usually reserved for international heads of state, but given to him in recognition of his work in building communities through music. That same year he received the National Black Sports and Entertainment Lifetime Achievement Award. Other inductees with him were Roberto Clemente, Count Basie, Max Roach, Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington. In 2002, he was recognized by the London BBC, with their Award for Most Exciting Latin Performance.

In 2005, Mr. Palmieri received a series of prestigious awards: he received the Alice Tully African Heritage Award from City College, received the Harlem Renaissance Award and was inducted into both the Bronx Walk of Fame and the Chicago Walk of Fame. He also received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Urban Latino Magazine. He acted as Godfather of the Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York City and received the EL Award from El Diario Newspaper. Yet another outstanding achievement that year was the debut of "Caliente," a radio show hosted by Mr. Palmieri on National Public Radio, making him the first Latino ever to do so. The show has been a tremendous success, being picked up by more than 160 radio stations nationwide.

Born in Spanish Harlem in 1936, Eddie began piano studies at an early age, as did his celebrated older brother, the late Salsa legend and pianist, Charlie Palmieri. For Latin New Yorkers of Eddie's generation, music was a vehicle out of El Barrio. At age 11, he auditioned at Weil Recital Hall, which is next door to Carnegie Hall, a venue as far from the Bronx as he could imagine. Possessed by a desire to play the drums, Palmieri joined his uncle's orchestra at age 13, where he played timbales. Says Palmieri, "By 15, it was good-bye timbales and back to the piano until this day. I'm a frustrated percussionist, so I take it out on the piano."

He began his professional career as a pianist in the early '50s with Eddie Forrester's Orchestra. In 1955 he joined Johnny Segui's band. He also spent a year with the Tito Rodriguez Orchestra before forming his own band, the legendary "La Perfecta" in 1961. La Perfecta was unique in that it featured a trombone section (led by the late Barry Rogers) in place of trumpets, something that had been rarely done in Latin music, demonstrating the early stages of Palmieri's unconventional means of orchestration. They were known as "the band with the crazy roaring elephants" because of this configuration of two trombones, flute, percussion, bass and a vocalist. With an infectious sound, Palmieri's band soon joined the ranks of Machito, Tito Rodriguez and other major Latin orchestras of the day. His unconventional style would once again surprise critics and his fans with the 1970 release entitled Harlem River Drive. This recording was the first to really merge black and latin styles (and musicians), resulting in a free-form sound encompassing elements of salsa, funk, soul and jazz. What resulted was a fusion that moved effortlessly from mood, groove, texture and excitement with its multi-dimensional guitar, funky piano riffs, notable brass and unforgettable rhythm section. Led by Eddie, the group also included his brother Charlie, as well as excellent players from both communities such as Victor Venegas, Andy Gonzales, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie and Ronnie Cuber. Further to this proclivity for creating and performing in funk latin style, in 1997 he was invited to record by Little Louie Vega in "Nuyorican Soul," a release which has been a huge hit with dancers and dj's in the house music genre.

Palmieri's influences include not only his older brother Charlie but also Jesus Lopez, Lili Martinez and other Cuban players of the 1940s; jazz luminaries Art Tatum, Bobby Timmons, Bill Evans, Horace Silver, Bud Powell and McCoy Tyner. Says Palmieri, "In Cuba, there was a development and crystallization of rhythmical patterns that have excited people for years. Cuban music provides the fundamental from which I nevermove. Whatever has to be built must be built from there. It's a cross-cultural effect that makes magnificent music."

Eddie Palmieri, a restless, yet instinctive artist, embraces the future of his music by unapologetically blazing a distinctive musical path to the delight of fans across the globe. He has one of the most actively touring Salsa and Latin Jazz orchestras to date, tours of which have taken him to Europe, Asia, Latin America, North Africa and throughout the Caribbean. A true powerhouse of brilliance, known for his astute arranging skills and historic compositions, Mr. Palmieri has shown that time is infinite with respect to his repertoire as he continues to thrill audiences throughout the world with his legendary style.

You won't want to miss Gary Morgan's 20-piece Latin jazz band "PanAmericana!" on Tuesday, May 18 at Jazz Tuesdays in the Gillespie Auditorium at the NY Baha'i Center (53 East 11th Street between University Place and Broadway). There will be 2 shows: 8:00 and 9:30 p.m. Please call 212-222-5159 for Reservations and Information.

Gary Morgan is an award-winning composer/arranger/bandleader who fronts an exciting 20 piece latin jazz orchestra called PanAmericana! that features his original compositions and also his arrangements of contemporary songs from the most talented composers from Brazil, Cuba and New York, such as Egberto Gismonti, Hermeto Pascoal, Itiberê Zwarg, Toninho Horta, Hilario Duran and Chucho Valdez.

The range of rhythms encompasses samba, bossa, baião, maracatu, frevo, mambo and danzon, played by a gifted assemblage of New York jazz musicians, including:

Admission is 15.00, 10.00 for students. Tickets will be sold at the door, or call 212-222-5159 for advance tickets and information.

The John Birks Gillespie Auditorium, dedicated to the late jazz great Dizzy Gillespie, who was a Bahá'í, is located in the heart of Greenwich Village within the New York City Bahá'í Center. Beginning on January 6, 2004, the anniversary of Dizzy’s death, his former pianist and musical director, Mike Longo, began presenting weekly jazz concerts every Tuesday evening at 8:00 and 9:30 PM.

This and every thursday AEROBAR with the best party in south beach INDUSTRY PLAYGROUND always ready to bring you fun... as you know VINICIO ROTELLI & NELSON DIAZ will make you jump on the dance floor with their tunes,this week we have a special friend dj as a guest DJ RICKY D all of this in the vip room and in the main room also the best with an open format act dj's RADAMAS with this combo you can't loose so with that being said i hope to see you all in the party on the beach "ADDICT"this is the place to be. Thx to Maribel Salazar for the invitation.

If you are in the Florida area, don't miss the 2010 ED HARDY SWIMWEAR FASHION SHOW on Friday May 21st!You must attend this RED Carpet affair to see the NEW & SEXY 2010 Swimwear Ed Hardy Designs for the summer.Hosted by MAXIM model Tami Donaldson

Bradley Leighton Adds More Performance Dates To The "Music For Life Tour"

"You may have never heard the flute played like this until you've heard Bradley Leighton," wrote Susan Frances of JazzReview.com. "He turns the flute into whatever instrument he wants it to be." A remarkable performer, Bradley Leighton kicks off his summer "Music For Life" tour schedule with fire and flair by being one of the featured artists at the Carlyle Club for the Pacific Coast Jazz label's All Stars Concert on Friday, June 11th. The event hosts a hot line up of musicians that include: Art Sherrod Jr, Ronny Smith, Al Williams III and a special guest appearance by Washington D.C. recording artists, Saltman Knowles. With all of these talented, swinging and funky musicians on one stage it is a guaranteed good time for all. Located at 411 John Carlyle Street, Alexandria, VA, the fun begins at 8:00 p.m. and reservations are available at: 703-548-8899 or www.thecarlyleclub.com.

On Sunday, June 13th at 1:00 p.m. Bradley Leighton is the featured artist at the Takoma Park Jazz Festival along with five-time Downbeat Best New Artist winner, Jeremy Pelt and the D.C. All-Stars, led by Chuck Redd. For the first time this year, the Takoma Park Jazz Festival will present a free master class with Pelt, Leighton and Redd on their respective instruments. As a Yamaha Performing Artist and flute coach, Bradley is known for his dedication to education in the arts and has developed his own workshop program, "Music For Life," that inspires all ages to embrace the study of improvisation. Located at Old Town Takoma Park, MD the festival is free and goes from 11:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. For more information contact: www.tpjazzfest.org.

Other stops along the way on the tour include the The Greenwich in Cincinnati, Wilbert's Music in Cleveland, Vonn Jazz in Columbus, Ames Summer Festival in Iowa, the Omaha Summer Arts Festival in Omaha, the Coronado Library in California, the Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Festival in Mobile, AL and the final stop on September 25th at Smooth Jazz & High Desert in CA.For more information about the "Music For Life Tour" go to, www.BradleyLeighton.comwww.PacificCoastJazz.com.*********"Music For Life Tour" Dates:

September 25 - 4:00 p.m. Smooth Jazz & High Desert, Adelanto, CA**********Bradley Leighton has a unique and powerful sound bringing a fire and flair not usually heard nor expected from a flutist. Jim Santella of the LA Jazz Scene wrote, "he exhibits the musical virtuosity that has carried his career around the world." His style of swing evolved from listening to the big, hi-octane bands of Kenton, Herman and Ferguson in the 60's-70's while his funkiness derives from years of listening to Tower of Power, Earth, Wind & Fire, the Brecker Brothers and countless other soul/R&B acts. With four highly respected recordings under the Pacific Coast Jazz label and numerous features on other artist's CDs, Bradley has established himself as one of the worlds premier flute players.

His recording projects Just Doin' Our Thang (2005,) Back To The Funk (2006) and his most recent CD, Soul Collective (2009,) were nominated "Best Jazz Album of the Year" by the San Diego Music Awards Academy and continue to receive national radio airplay and promotion.Bradley has performed across the US and internationally as both sideman and bandleader for over twenty-five years. Leighton has opened for the Greater Hartford Jazz Festival (featuring artists Joyce Cooling and Gerald Albright) and has headlined for the Gainesville Jazz Festival, Tacoma Wine and Jazz Festival, Rancho Mirage Art Affaire. He continuously performs at recognized clubs like Brooklyn Jazz Café in Dallas, Scat Jazz Lounge in Houston, Humphrey's, Anthology and Dizzy's in San Diego along with a multitude of clubs and festivals across the United States. This summer he'll be performing at the Omaha Summer Arts Festival, the Takoma Park, MD Jazz Festival, Wilbert's in Cleveland, the Museum of African American History in Detroit and The Carlyle Club in Virginia as part of his "Music For Life Tour."

A Yamaha Performing Artist since January 2006, Leighton is dedicated to sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm of music as a clinician and educator. Besides teaching private lessons and being a flute coach at the Music Magnet School, Oak Park Elementary in San Diego, Bradley leads workshops and clinics for musicians of all skill levels, including, "Jazz Improvisation for the Classically Trained Flutist," and "Music For Life - Improvisation for the Adult Amateur Musician." Bradley is a member of the Board of the San Diego Flute Guild and a participating member of the National Flute Association as well as the leader of the Rancho Penasquitos Flute Choir and the Penasquitos Jazz Flute Choir. He also devotes his time to performing for a number of philanthropic organizations in San Diego.

62 minutes of Jimmy Rowles & Joe Pass? No, this time the duo is Pacífico Mascarenhas & Juarez Moreira. And it's the talk of the town.Pacífico, who had never played in any of the several albums recorded by his legendary Sambacana group, surprises the world appearing as a pianist in this duo session with one of Brazil's all-time greatest guitarists, Juarez Moreira, heard on his Gibson.This limited deluxe package comes with an additional booklet including the lead sheets of all the 50 tunes contained herein, and distributed on the CD in 17 medleys.Highlights: "I'll Remember April," "Easy to Love," "Lover" and Pacífico's own "For Emily" and "One of These Days" (aka "Num Desses Dias," from the "Sambacana IV" album).